


looking down the right road

by ljghtswood



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Fix-It, Fix-It of Sorts, Fluff and Angst, M/M, POV Keith (Voltron), Pining Keith (Voltron), Season/Series 08, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-23
Updated: 2018-12-22
Packaged: 2019-09-25 03:53:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,592
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17113979
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ljghtswood/pseuds/ljghtswood
Summary: Keith thinks he has no chance with Lance, and is especially discouraged when the Red Paladin has a talk with him after his date with Allura.  But little does Keith know, Lance may have been looking down the wrong road this whole time.





	1. Part One

**Author's Note:**

> Canon season 8 was a mess so I wrote this as a way to cope lol. The title of this fic is inspired by the song Like I Can by Sam Smith and also a klance edit I saw on twitter a while ago. I also want to publicly thank my friend Ciara for agreeing to beta this story. I appreciate it so much.
> 
> Anyway please enjoy Part One.

**Part One ******

********

_Dear Lance, ___

___Just so you know, I’m only writing this because I know for a fact that you’re never gonna read it, let alone find it. I have something to get off my chest. Shiro says I’ve been holding this in for too long. He’s been telling me that for a while, now, actually. But I didn’t listen. And now it’s too late. You have no idea how much it meant to me that you confided in me about your date with Allura. Do you finally admit that there was never a rivalry between us? That we’re friends? Hah, yeah. Friends.... Sometimes I wish things were different, you know? I thought we could’ve had something, you and me. Regardless, I’m happy for you. Like any sharpshooter, you got what you were aiming for all along, huh? I bet you didn’t expect to have gotten me in the process as well, though. That’s okay-- ____ _

____ _ _

____Keith jumped from where he sat, atop the black lion, when he heard the sound of the door to the Garrison’s hangar being shut. Hurriedly he stuffed the piece of paper inside the pocket of his jacket. There he was, the boy who Keith had just poured his heart out to in letter-form, the object of his affection, who was currently so close yet so out of reach. There stood Lance, still wearing the outfit Keith (okay, and Hunk, but whatever) had helped pick out for his date tonight: a grey sweater over a blue button-up shirt. When he first saw the end result of the Quest For Perfect Date-Look, Keith just about lost his composure and almost forgot _he _wasn’t the one going out with Lance.___ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______“Oh, hey, Keith. I didn’t expect to see you here. I thought I was gonna be alone....”_ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______“You okay, Lance?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______Lance forced a laugh through clenched teeth. “Oh yeah, just peachy.” He sighed, climbing up his own lion, which stood next to Black. On the right-hand side, as always. Lance eyed the white square sticking out from Keith’s pocket. He squinted. “Whatcha got there? It doesn’t exactly look like a handkerchief.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______Keith was confused until he saw what the other boy’s eyes were trained on. “Oh, it’s nothing, don’t worry about it.” Tucking the paper further into hiding, he redirects their conversation: “What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be on your date with Allura right now? You’re back early.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______Lance shrugged. “I messed up.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______“What do you mean?” Keith asked, eyebrows furrowed._ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______The Cuban boy’s gaze was fixed on the ground. “I told her.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______Keith wasn’t following. “You.. told... her...?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______“That I love her.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______Oh._ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______At those words, Keith’s eyes widened._ _ _ _ _ _

______Keith could think of so many aspects of his life that did not go according to plan. He didn’t plan on getting kicked out of the Garrison when he first enrolled at the school. That one fateful night all those years ago, Keith hadn’t suspected his mission to rescue Shiro to be interrupted, nor had he foreseen being chosen to fight in an intergalactic war. Never in a million years would he have imagined he that he would one day find his mother, much less that she’d be of an alien species. But somehow all of that was bearable compared to the bomb Lance just dropped. He felt a searing ache in his chest when he heard Lance utter those words. Three words, three syllables, but one hole in Keith’s heart. _“I love her.”__ _ _ _ _ _

________Keith felt selfish for what he wrote in that letter. Now he definitely needs to make sure that Lance never reads it._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Lance sighed forlornly. “But she doesn’t feel the same. God, why did I have to drop the L word?! And on the first date, too! I probably scared her off.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Look, I’m not an expert in romance or relationships or just... people in general, but maybe this is a misunderstanding? Miscommunication?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________The other boy shook his head. “I dunno, man, I mean, she didn’t say it back. In fact she almost looked sad when I said it.” Keith watched as a tear slid down bronze skin._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Keith frowned. “I’m sorry, dude...”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“What did I do wrong?” Lance looked at Keith, hopeless, as if the Asian boy held all the answers of the universe._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Keith shook his head reassuringly. “You didn’t do anything, Lance. And Allura does care for you, I’m sure of it. Besides, you don’t know what was going through her head at that moment.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“I guess you’re right. Thanks, Keith.” Keith saw Lance’s lip curl up in a ghost of a smile._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Of course, Lance. Like I said when we watched the sunset the other day, you’ve always had my back, and now, I promise to have yours. I’m here if you need to talk,” Keith assured him._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“You’re such a good friend,” Lance said appreciatively. “I think... I think I’m gonna ask her if we can have a do-over date. If this is a bad idea please tell me before I go make a big fool of myself.” Lance turns to Keith, awaiting an answer._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________If Keith had been anyone else, he probably would have reacted differently. If he was even the same boy he was at the start of all this, before Allura and Voltron and finding the Blue Lion, he might’ve taken the selfish route. It would have been so easy to tell Lance that yes, there’s a chance he might get rejected, but he knew of someone else who would absolutely love to date him. It would have been so easy to hand Lance the letter he was in the middle of writing just before Lance entered the room, having his feelings laid out in the open. Hell, he could have even just told him right then and there, verbally. But he didn’t. He was better than that. Although Keith’s heart sunk, what he wanted most in the world was Lance’s happiness. If that came in the form of a second chance with the girl of his dreams, who was Keith to get in the way of that? Keith shrugged. “I guess you never know unless you try, right?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Lance’s eyes lit up. “You really think so? Okay. Okay. I’m gonna do this.” Then more to himself, “You got this, McClain. Two times’ a charm.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Keith was pretty sure the saying was, “Three times’ a charm,” but couldn’t bear the thought of killing the other boy’s excitement._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _


	2. Part Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith and Lance are training together when Keith’s bayard gets an upgrade.

**Part Two**

A few days passed, and Keith hadn’t had the chance to really follow-up with Lance since they talked in the hangar the other night because they’d all been too busy with training, having meetings, and trying to protect the universe from complete and utter demise, the usual paladin duties. So he had no idea whether Allura agreed to another date with Lance. Not that it was any of his business, anyway.

“Keith!”

The ebony haired boy stopped in his tracks. Speak of the devil.

“Hey, Lance.”

“You gonna go train, too?”

“Why, you wanna join?”

“Er, I mean if you’d rather be on your own-” Lance blushed, rubbing the back of his neck.

Keith chuckled. “Actually it’d be nice to have some company.”

Lance’s mouth turned up into a grin. “Great! Okay.”

They walked in comfortable silence to the training room. Once they got there, Lance had a suggestion: “Wanna spar? I know I’ve had this broadsword for a while now, but it’s still so new to me, this whole _slash, slash slash_ thing.” Keith watched fondly as Lance waved his bayard through the air in every direction. How could this boy be so cute? It was really unfair.

“Whoa, careful,” Keith chuckled, “No poking anyone’s eyes out. How will we be able to form Voltron if one of us can’t see?”

“Pfft, I’m sure we could find a way.” Lance then got in a fighting stance, pointing his blade in Keith’s direction with determination written on his face. Keith followed suit.

“Let’s do this thing.”

They had a good fight going. They seemed to be pretty evenly matched. To any onlooker it would have been difficult to tell that Lance was much less experienced at this than Keith. Although his form could use some work, Lance’s strategy was spot-on. It was like he knew exactly where Keith was going to strike next. They were like a seesaw, going back and forth. For the first time, a training session actually felt more fun rather than like a necessity or routine. 

His bayard felt unusually heavy in his hand, and Keith momentarily lost his focus. It was probably nothing. Keith continued to fight, trying to ignore how weird his bayard felt in his hand. But then he saw Lance bring his Altean broadsword to his side, his eyes glued to Keith’s hand.

Keith furrowed his eyebrows. “What is it? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

Eyes wide, Lance just pointed at Keith’s hand.

“Wha- oh.” Keith finally glanced down at the object in his hand. It was _not_ a sword, that’s for sure. Instead his bayard had took form of a blaster. “How-”

“What the hell, man? I thought I’d finally caught up to you, but you’re always trying to one-up me, huh? Your gun is way cooler than mine was,” Lance complained.

“I... have a.. Gun now?”

Lance shrugged. “Apparently.” He sets his own bayard down on the floor. “Can I see it?” Wordlessly he handed it to him. Lance studied it, turning it over so he could see every part of it from every angle imaginable. He held it up to the side of his cheek as if getting ready to shoot. He was in his element, and Keith swore he could watch Lance like this all day.

“Oh, right. This baby’s yours. I think I got a little carried away.” 

Keith snorted. “You think?” Lance’s cheeks flushed. “Although... would you wanna maybe... help me use this thing?”

Lance looked like a kid on Christmas morning. “Really?” He asked excitedly. Then, regaining his composure, said with a smirk that made Keith’s knees weak, “It would be my honor.”

 

“What are we doing here, Lance? We’re supposed to be training, remember?” Lance had brought them to the rec room, also known as the game room. “We can’t be wasting time playing games.” Keith placed a hand on his hip, incredulous as he watched Lance pull darts off the board hanging on the wall.

“Lesson number one, and take notes because there might be a pop quiz,” Lance announced, as if Keith hadn’t spoken at all. “A good shooter should know how to aim properly.” He paused for dramatic effect. “But a _sharpshooter_ has precision and accuracy. _Never_ misses.”

Keith would never admit it, but Lance’s authoritative tone was almost intimidating. It was kind of hot.

“Have you thrown a dart before, Keith?”

Before Keith could reply, Lance was already making his way over to him, dart in hand. What was he- _Oh._ Lance stopped behind Keith. He gently placed the dart in Keith’s pale hand, fingers wrapping around it instinctively. Keith’s breath hitched when he realized that Lance’s hand remained on the back of his.

“Remember to relax,” Lance chided in Keith’s ear. Oh, the irony. Maybe he would be able to do that if Lance wasn’t standing so close and practically breathing down Keith’s neck. There was nothing Keith could do but let Lance guide Keith’s throwing hand, lifting his forearm up and tilting his wrist back, then bringing Keith’s forearm forward in a swift motion. Keith was too focused on the rapid beating of his heart to notice that Lance had assisted him in getting a bullseye.

Once Lance declared that Keith had mastered dart throwing, he decided it was time for Lesson Number Two. If Keith barely survived Lesson One, he wasn’t sure how he could possibly make it out of this one alive.

 

 

“Okay so before you can shoot a real gun, I think we should practice with something less... dangerous.” Lance started walking out the door, turning his head to face Keith with a smirk. “You coming, or not, Mullet?”

 

“Oh, uh, yeah.” Keith followed behind. 

 

“Aha! We’re here,” Lance announced with a smile.  
“We’re at the pool,” Keith stated dumbly. They were at the Garrison pool, to be exact. Keith had never been down here when he was a student. Not being the best swimmer, he didn’t have any reason to, nor did he choose to take swimming as his physical education course. Although it was hell to run on the track in the middle of the desert, it definitely beat drowning, in Keith’s opinion. It didn’t surprise him that Lance was familiar with this area, though. With all of Lance’s talk about the beach back home, of course he was a swimmer. 

Great, now Keith’s mind was plagued with thoughts of Lance at the beach. He’d seen Lance shirtless once, a long time ago, when they both wanted to use the pool on the Castle of Lions. Keith wondered if Lance looked the same as he did back then. Given the knowledge that Lance had been training more often recently, Keith suspected he was probably more toned and muscular than before. Oh, what Keith would give to be able to test his theory. Keith blushed at the thought. 

“Yep.”

“Why?”

Lance said nothing, just made his way over to a box near the lifeguard tower. He rummaged through it, looking for something. “Here we are!” Lance held the objects in his hands up in triumph.

Keith’s brows arched. “Water guns?” Since when did the Garrison have _toys?_

“Yeah, uh, I may have bribed the lifeguard to let me keep them here back in the day, since, you know, we weren’t allowed to have weapons in our rooms.” Lance looked at the toys in his hands proudly. “Going here was a long shot. I can’t believe they were still there.”

“Must’ve been buried deep in there.”

“That’s what she- sorry, yeah, must’ve,” agreed Lance. He handed Keith a gun with a wicked grin. “Well, here you go. Let’s fill these bad boys up, yeah?”

 

They spent a good maybe fifteen minutes simultaneously chasing after one another and squirting each other with water. They ran pretty much all over the Garrison, but Keith wasn’t sure exactly all the places they ended up at. His adrenaline gave him tunnel vision. All of his focus was on his target: Lance. Everything else faded away.

Right now Lance was in hiding. He knew he was in this room -- it seemed to be some sort of computer lab or control room of some sort, Keith wasn’t sure -- and Keith was determined to find him. He was determined to win. Wait, win? When did this become a game, a competition? They were supposed to be training. They were training, right?

Panting from all the running the two of them had been doing, he walked around as he scanned his surroundings. He looked for any sign of sentient life -- any sudden movement or noise.

Suddenly the lights turned on, and for some odd reason his initial instinct was to pull the trigger on his water gun, resulting in squirting Allura in the face. “Oh, my God, Allura, I’m so sorry!”

“Keith! What are you doing here?” Allura’s eyes travel to the object in the boy’s hand. “What is _that?_ ” 

“Oh, this? It’s a water gun,” Keith explained, ignoring how awkward he felt right now. He decided not to add the fact that her boyfriend gave it to him. _Were_ she and Lance boyfriend and girlfriend? Lance had never told him. There was a difference between being in a relationship and just dating, wasn’t there? Keith hated that he cared so much. “It’s like any other one except it’s not lethal.” Keith gave his hand a small spritz. “See?”

Allura still looked puzzled. “Okay..” She cleared her throat. “Anyway, the reason I came in here was to look over some of the plans Iverson and Shiro were working on, but since you’re here, could I... ask you something?”

Keith blinked. “Uh, sure, Princess.”

“You’re close with Lance, right?”

“I- I mean, uh, sure, I guess you could say that.” Keith wanted to say no, but that felt like a lie. But saying yes felt like a lie as well. Sure, they were friends, but he wasn’t sure if _close_ was the right word to use.

“How’s he holding up? I feel really bad for turning down his offer at a second date.” She sat down in a chair, and Keith took the one beside her. Now he was intrigued. She said no? From the carefree attitude Lance had all day sparring and having a water gun war, Keith assumed he and Allura had gone on their second date the day before and made their relationship official. He figured Lance was in the Honeymoon Phase. 

“He..” Keith searches his mind for the right words. “Seems to be doing okay.”

“Oh, that’s wonderful to hear! He really is a good guy. I just don’t feel ready for that kind of thing right now,” she explained.

“I’m sure he understands.”

Then she was embracing him. “I gotta go meet up with Romelle now, but promise me you’ll take care of him, alright?”

Keith froze. Did she know?

He didn’t get the chance to ask her as she walked over to the other side of the room, picked up a stack of papers, and left the room.

Once she was gone, Lance came out from his hiding spot. Behind the projector, huh. 

“So she said no to the date?”

Lance sat down where Allura had been previously. “Yeah... I guess I forgot to tell you.”

“Are you gonna be okay?” Keith inquired.

Lance looked at Keith, then broke eye contact. Lance’s countenance was hard to read; Pensive, he said, “You know what? I have a feeling I will


	3. Part Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The carnival episode from season 8 but with a twist ;)

**Part Three**

Keith wanted to be anywhere but here. He and his fellow paladins, along with Shiro, Adam, and Coran, were currently on the planet Drazan. In front of them were tents scattered in an area as big as two football fields, along with what looked like a rollercoaster and a ferris wheel. Keith didn’t have any other word for it except for-

“A carnival?!” Lance was elated, practically bouncing off the walls at the opportunity to do something other than usual paladin stuff.

“Yes, it’s to celebrate a holiday known as Clear Day!” Coran explained.

“But what about-” 

Keith was cut off by his brother, who was standing next to Adam. He put his prosthetic hand on his hip. “Keith, going to this carnival could do you some good. You’ve all been working so hard, I think you guys should get to have some fun for once.” 

Shiro turned to Adam. “C’mon, babe, Coran said there’s usually an arm wrestling competition. Do you think I have a shot at winning with this?” He flexed both his prosthetic and natural arms before walking off hand-in-hand with his boyfriend, giggling. The former fiancées decided that with everything that’s happened, it would be best to just start over. Usually Adam would be on Earth, but Shiro wanted to bring him along. Now with the revelation of the carnival, Keith guessed this was going to be their first date since reuniting with each other.

Eventually everyone else walked off in separate directions, too. Well, almost everyone. Lance was still standing right next to Keith.

“Ooh, Keith, look!” He pointed to their left. “A rollercoaster! Let’s go!” Keith didn’t really have a choice in the matter as he was dragged over to the line.

Okay, so it turned out this wasn’t so much a rollercoaster as it was just a car on a track, with twists and turns here and there. There was some spinning, as well, but nothing nauseating, thankfully. What Keith could’ve done without, though, was the weird animatronics singing an obnoxious song that seemed to be on a loop for the duration of the ride.

“Oh, man, you know what this reminds me of?” asked Lance once they got on the ride. “I mean, sort of, but the singing animatronics, at least.”

“Hm?”

“It’s A Small World.” Lance rose an eyebrow at the lack of response from Keith. “You know, from Disneyland?” 

“Oh, I’ve... never been.”

“ _Dude._ How?”

Keith shrugged. “Never been able to afford it.”

“Have you been to _any _theme park? You can’t be a total lost cause.”__

__The Asian boy shook his head no._ _

__“Well then I’m glad you chose _me_ of all people to lose your theme park virginity to,” Lance looked sincerely into his eyes, as if ‘theme park virginity’ was a completely normal phrase that everyone used._ _

__“You’re ridiculous, did you know that?”_ _

__“Ronnie’s been telling me that since I was five.” Lance’s gaze landed on two animatronics next to each other. “That one is you and that’s me!” He declared. Keith didn’t have to ask him to clarify. It was obvious that the one that looked as if it had black hair and bangs was him, while the taller one with brown spots on its had which looked like brown hair, was the one Lance saw himself as. What confused Keith about why those two, in particular, were them, was the fact that the two animatronics were looking into each other’s eyes, and their alien limbs equivalent to hands were touching in what seem to be the shape of a heart. The scene looked so... romantic._ _

__Soon the ride was over and they stepped off onto the platform to exit the ride. “How was that for your first ever ride?”_ _

__In all honesty it _was_ pretty fun. But would Keith give Lance the satisfaction of knowing that? Hell no. So he just shrugged nonchalantly. “It was alright.”_ _

__“Just alright?!” Lance placed a hand on his shoulder, and maybe Keith’s knee locked on instinct at the feel of his touch. “Keith, my buddy, my man. Don’t lie, you know you had an awesome time.”_ _

__Keith just walked in the opposite direction. Without turning toward Lance he said, “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”_ _

__That must’ve riled him up because next thing he knew, Lance was in his face. “I’m gonna get you to have fun today,” he avowed. “I’m gonna show you a good time, just you wait, Mullet.”_ _

__They end up going on the other ride the carnival had to offer, which was much faster than the first. “Now this is more like it!” Lance had marveled. They also played some games, and both had their fair shares of wins and losses._ _

__In fact they stopped in their tracks at a game booth right now. There were bottles arranged in a way that reminded Keith of bowling pins. The object of the game was to get as many rings around the bottles as possible. It was a two player game, apparently, and the opponent who could get the most rings on the bottles won a prize. Which happened to be.... A Voltron lion plush toy?_ _

__“Oh, it is on!” They declared in unison._ _

__They went to it, tossing the rings as if their lives depended on it. Eventually they were neck and neck, both with nine out of ten bottles with rings around them. They tossed their last rings at the same time, and... both made it. They _tied.__ _

__“Sorry, guys, one prize per game,” the gamekeeper told them when asked if they could both get a prize since they both technically won._ _

__“That’s not fair!” Keith argued._ _

__“Keith, it’s fine,” Lance assured him. Lance took a red lion plushie and handed it to Keith. “I want you to have it.”_ _

__“But I’m not the red paladin anymore,” Keith protested. _Goddamn it, just take the stupid toy,_ Keith reprimanded himself internally._ _

__“You flew Red and now I fly Red,” Lance said as if that fact clarified anything at all. “It’s sort of our thing, right?”_ _

__Keith was dumbstruck. The way Lance looked at him, with uncertainty and some other emotion Keith couldn’t quite place, made Keith want to do something brave. Something like kiss the living daylights out of this boy. So he did._ _

__He took the lion from Lance’s hand, and, using his free hand, tugged on the collar of Lance’s shirt, joining their lips together. He pulled back as quick as it happened, awaiting any kind of response from Lance. Lance just stood there, shocked more than anything. His fingertips brushed along his lips in astonishment. “Y-you-! You can’t just- just _do that!_ ” With wide eyes, he pointed an accusatory finger at Keith. Call Keith crazy but something in Lance’s voice told Keith he wasn’t actually mad. _ _

__“I- I’m so-” Keith stammered in an attempt to apologize._ _

__“D-Do it again,” Lance demanded with a shy smile, blushing. Despite the whiplash this exchange was giving him, Keith obliged._ _

__This time their kiss was longer and had more of a rhythm to it. It felt just like when they were sparring the other day. Just as Lance somehow knew exactly where to strike at Keith with his sword, he somehow knew where to place his lips so they fit perfectly with Keith’s. “God,” Lance panted, “Why,” another staggering breath, “Haven’t we,” pant, “done this before?” With how well this was going, it almost felt like they had. It felt like this was something they did all the time._ _

__The gamekeeper cleared his throat. “As sweet as this display is, you’re holding up the line!”_ _

__“Oh, right, sorry, uh.” There Keith goes, stammering again._ _

__“We were just going,” Lance grabbed Keith’s hand and pulled him off to the side._ _

__They just walked around the carnival, hand in hand for a while until Lance complained that his feet were killing him. So they found a bench and sat down._ _

__“So-” They both started, then giggled._ _

__“You go first,” Keith said._ _

__“Alright,” Lance chuckled, “So, uh, you... like me?”_ _

__Keith feigned a gasp. “How’d you find out?”_ _

__“I’m just clever like that, you know.”_ _

__Unable to contain their giddiness, they laughed. Never in his life had Keith felt so... light. Knowing how it felt to have Lance McClain’s lips on his felt like he had all of the knowledge of the universe at his disposal. He felt like the world was his for the taking. He wasn’t interested in any of that, though. All he was interested in was the boy sitting across from him. The boy whose presence could light up any room just by being there, like a constellation brightening the night sky._ _

__He took Lance’s hand in his. “You have no idea what you’re doing to me...,” Keith murmured._ _

__“If it’s anything like what you’re doing to me, then I think I have a good guess.”_ _

__“I want to kiss you again,” Keith informed him._ _

__“So do it.”_ _

__And he does._ _

__

__A week later, Keith is next to Kosmo watching the sunset -- or at least the equivalent of one -- on the planet the team was visiting, which he already forgot the name of. He didn’t bother asking Shiro or anyone in fear of sounding like he wasn’t listening the first time. And okay, sure, maybe he _wasn’t_ listening when Allura told them where they were. But that wasn’t entirely his fault. It also wasn’t his fault that his attention was trained on the way Lance nonchalantly slid his fingers in between Keith’s as if they belonged there. It also wasn’t his fault that Lance started rubbing his thumb on top of Keith’s and it wasn’t his fault how fucking amazing it felt. _ _

__This boy was going to be the death of him._ _

__“Keith!”_ _

__Kosmo barked and Keith jumped at the sudden interruption of the peace and quiet they’d been basking in just now._ _

__“Hi, Lance,” he smiled, and was met with a peck on his lips._ _

__“Mind if I join you?”_ _

__Lance initially sat down on the other side of Kosmo, petting him and giving him some nice belly rubs. Keith wondered if Lance had a dog growing up. He seemed like the type. Or maybe he was just good with animals, the way he was good with people._ _

__After a while Kosmo fell asleep. Somehow some time after that Keith ended up sitting in between Lance’s long legs as Lance embraced him from behind, with his hands joined together and resting on Keith’s stomach. Lance started peppering kisses on Keith’s collarbone and then up his neck, and along his jawline. This wasn’t the first time being intimate with each other, but damn if it didn’t feel like the first time every time. Every time, without a fail, it sent shivers down Keith’s spine and left butterflies in his stomach. He never wanted this feeling to end._ _

__“Date me,” Lance breathed._ _

__Keith chuckled. “Is that not what I’m doing?”_ _

__“No, I mean, like, _date me_ date me, you know?” Keith leaned back against Lance’s chest. “Make it official. Announce to the team, to our families, to the whole universe for all I care, that we are boyfriends and love to make out with each other when we’re not busy trying to save the day.” Lance nuzzled his nose into the small of Keith’s neck._ _

__Keith turned so that he was facing the other boy. “Okay.”_ _

__“Okay? We’re doing this? I’m yours and you’re mine and all that jazz?”_ _

__“Yes, Lance.” Keith dug his hand in his jacket pocket. “And as first order of business on day one of being your boyfriend, I have something for you. It’s only fair since you gave me Red Jr.” Red Jr. being the stuffed toy from the carnival. He was not the most creative with naming things, which was why he gave the excuse of waiting for Kosmo to tell him his name when he had first brought him to the team. God, that felt like a lifetime ago._ _

__“You didn’t have to get me anything...”_ _

__Keith didn’t listen, just pulled out a white sheet of paper, and placed it into his moisturized hands. “You’ve seen this before,” he tells him. “I don’t know if you remember but you asked about it back in the hangar at the Garrison. After you left that night I added some stuff. Some of it’s irrelevant now, but...”_ _

__Lance unfolded the paper._ _

__“Read it. Please.”_ _

___Dear Lance,_ _ _

___Just so you know, I’m only writing this because I know for a fact that you’re never gonna read it, let alone find it. I have something to get off my chest. Shiro says I’ve been holding this in for too long. He’s been telling me that for a while, now, actually. But I didn’t listen. And now it’s too late. You have no idea how much it meant to me that you confided in me about your date with Allura. Do you finally admit that there was never a rivalry between us? That we’re friends? Hah, yeah. Friends.... Sometimes I wish things were different, you know? I thought we could’ve had something, you and me. Regardless, I’m happy for you. Like any sharpshooter, you got what you were aiming for all along, huh? I bet you didn’t expect to have gotten me in the process as well, though. That’s okay. I just want you to be able to find happiness. I know how insecure you can get sometimes. You deserve to have someone who will be there for you and remind you just how important you are. You deserve to have someone who will make you feel the way you make me feel. I have no idea how you’re supposed to feel when you’re in love with someone, but I imagine it’s pretty close to how I feel when I’m around you. There. That’s all. I hope Shiro’s happy when I tell him I finally got around to writing all this out._ _ _

___Oh, right. Uh, Love, Keith and all that. Bye._ _ _

__

__He studied Lance as he read, watching for any sort of reaction. He thinks he might’ve seen tears escape those beautiful blue eyes of his. “Oh, Keith...” Lance took Keith’s hands in his, and their lips gravitated toward each other into a chaste kiss._ _

__When they pulled away, Lance said, “For the record, I have no idea how falling in love is supposed to feel, either.”_ _

__Keith’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “I thought you were in love with Allura at one point.”_ _

__Lance shrugged. “I thought so too, but the way I felt with her doesn’t even come _close _to the way I feel with you.”___ _

____Keith arched an eyebrow. “Oh? And how would you describe that?”_ _ _ _

____“You see, whenever I’d hear the phrase ‘falling in love’ I assumed people meant like literally falling down, _into _something, like a black hole or maybe like being thrown into the deep end of a swimming pool with no prior knowledge of how to swim or- or- I don’t know. But with you, it feels like I’m falling, but like, falling up instead of down.” Lance furrowed his eyebrows as if searching for a better description. “Does that make sense?”___ _ _ _

______Keith laughed. “Somehow it makes all the sense in the world. That’s pretty much how I feel with you.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Well, if we’re both falling up, it’s a good thing we can form wings together to keep us from face-planting on the ground,” Lance pointed out, “you know, because of like, gravity and shit.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“That was terrible.” Nonetheless Keith rolled his eyes fondly, pulling him in for another kiss_ _ _ _ _ _


End file.
